Eastern Michigan Athletics
Sunday, February 11
East Lansing, Mich.
4 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
0
at
4
Michigan State
Tennis Falls at Michigan State, 4-0
2/11/2024 8:46:00 PM | Tennis
Eastern sees its five-match winning streak come to an end on the road
EAST LANSING, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University tennis program battled throughout but saw its five-match winning streak come to an end as the host Michigan State University Spartans handed the visiting Eagles a 4-0 defeat in East Lansing, Mich., Sunday, Feb. 11. The Eagles (5-2) forced three singles matches to a third set before the Spartans (5-2) clinched the dual to end the match.
Quoting Kucera
"It was a great battle and so much tighter than the score showed," Head Coach Ryan Kucera said. " We started tentatively but, once we got into it, we really put them under constant pressure. We had chances on our racquet; it was that close. I'm so proud of how we fought back in singles. It took us probably too long to get into matches but, once we did, we competed and were playing some excellent tennis. There was a point where I felt the match turn almost all at once and for the last half of singles we outplayed them. If we had started better, it easily could've been a different story. Losing is never fun, but we have a lot of positives to take from a battle like this."
How It Happened
For the first time since its opening match of the season at Northwestern, Eastern was unable to secure the doubles point as the Spartans took a 1-0 lead early. MSU got things going with a 6-0 win at No. 1 before claiming the point at No. 3. In that match, Linda Eloundou (Yaounde, Cameroon/Augustine Meyou/New Mexico Military Institute) and Andrea Quiroz (Lima, Peru/La Molina 1278/Alcorn State), winners of their last three doubles matches by 6-0 scores, battled to the end, but fell, 7-5. Sabina Brichackova (Cheb, Czech Republic/Gymnázium Jana Blahoslava) and Ksyusha Saenko (Voronezh, Russia/Gymnasium 2) were also in a battle at No. 2 with the match tied at 5-5, but it went unfinished as the doubles point was clinched.
Moving into singles play, the Spartans won at No. 3 and No. 4 to make it 3-0 in the team standings before a win at No. 6 closed things out. The remaining three matches were all in their third sets but went unfinished as the team victory had been clinched. When the dual ended, Daniella Shved (Holon, Israel/Ort Holon) forced a third set as she dropped the first set, 6-2, before winning the second 7-5, and leading the third, 1-0. Eloundou was in a similar position at No. 5 as her first two sets went the same as Shved's but was down 1-0 in the third. The final match was No. 2 where Prerna Vichare (Mumbai, India/Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics) lost the first set, 6-3, before winning the second, 7-5. The third was scoreless when the dual ended.
Notes
›› Eastern fell to 5-2 overall while Michigan State improved to 5-2.
›› The Eagles fell to 6-41 all-time against the Spartans.
›› Eastern is now 98-110 all-time against fellow Michigan schools and 4-1 on the year with wins earlier this year against Hillsdale (6-1), two over Ferris State (6-1 and 5-0), and a 6-1 win over Oakland one day earlier.
›› The 5-2 start ranks tied for the third-best in program history behind on the 1984 and 2003 teams that opened 6-1.
›› Head Coach Ryan Kucera is 5-2 in his first year with the program, which is the third-best start to a coaching career in program history with Lucy Parker (1976-77, EMU's inaugural season) and Tim Gray (2003), both of whom opened 6-1.
›› Eastern was unable to win the doubles point, seeing its streak of five wins in a row come to an end.
Up Next
Eastern, who started a five-match road trip with the dual at Michigan State, remains on the road next week with a pair of matches in the Hoosier State. The week opened Friday, Feb. 16, with a 3 p.m. match at Butler University in Indianapolis, Ind., before closing Sunday, Feb. 18, in a 2 p.m. dual with Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Ind.
Follow Along
For all things EMU Tennis, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMUEaglesTennis on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Tennis on Instagram.
Michigan State 4, Eastern Michigan 0
Feb. 11 • MSU Tennis Center • East Lansing, Mich.
SINGLES
#1: Daniella Shved (EM) led Matilde Morais (MS), 2-6, 7-5, 1-0 unfinished
#2: Prerna Vichare (EM) tied with Liisa Vehvilainen (MS), 3-6, 7-5 unfinished
#3: Issey Purser (MS) def. Andrea Quiroz, 6-2, 6-2
#4: Ria Bhakta (MS) def. Kysusha Saenko, 6-1, 6-1
#5: Linda Eloundou (EM) trailed Marley Lambert (MS), 2-6, 7-5, 0-1 unfinished
#6: Nicole Conrad (MS) def. Sabina Brichackova, 7-6(3), 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 4, 6
DOUBLES
#1: Ayshe Can / Nicole Conard (MS) def. Daniella Shved / Prerna Vichare, 6-0
#2: Sabina Brichackova / Ksyusha Saenko (EM) vs. Matilde Morais / Liisa Vehvilaninen (MS), 5-5 unfinished
#3: Sarah Fazlagic / Makenna Martinez (MS) def. Linda Eloundou / Andrea Quiroz, 7-5
Order of finish: 1, 3
EMU 5-2, MSU 5-2
Quoting Kucera
"It was a great battle and so much tighter than the score showed," Head Coach Ryan Kucera said. " We started tentatively but, once we got into it, we really put them under constant pressure. We had chances on our racquet; it was that close. I'm so proud of how we fought back in singles. It took us probably too long to get into matches but, once we did, we competed and were playing some excellent tennis. There was a point where I felt the match turn almost all at once and for the last half of singles we outplayed them. If we had started better, it easily could've been a different story. Losing is never fun, but we have a lot of positives to take from a battle like this."
How It Happened
For the first time since its opening match of the season at Northwestern, Eastern was unable to secure the doubles point as the Spartans took a 1-0 lead early. MSU got things going with a 6-0 win at No. 1 before claiming the point at No. 3. In that match, Linda Eloundou (Yaounde, Cameroon/Augustine Meyou/New Mexico Military Institute) and Andrea Quiroz (Lima, Peru/La Molina 1278/Alcorn State), winners of their last three doubles matches by 6-0 scores, battled to the end, but fell, 7-5. Sabina Brichackova (Cheb, Czech Republic/Gymnázium Jana Blahoslava) and Ksyusha Saenko (Voronezh, Russia/Gymnasium 2) were also in a battle at No. 2 with the match tied at 5-5, but it went unfinished as the doubles point was clinched.
Moving into singles play, the Spartans won at No. 3 and No. 4 to make it 3-0 in the team standings before a win at No. 6 closed things out. The remaining three matches were all in their third sets but went unfinished as the team victory had been clinched. When the dual ended, Daniella Shved (Holon, Israel/Ort Holon) forced a third set as she dropped the first set, 6-2, before winning the second 7-5, and leading the third, 1-0. Eloundou was in a similar position at No. 5 as her first two sets went the same as Shved's but was down 1-0 in the third. The final match was No. 2 where Prerna Vichare (Mumbai, India/Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics) lost the first set, 6-3, before winning the second, 7-5. The third was scoreless when the dual ended.
Notes
›› Eastern fell to 5-2 overall while Michigan State improved to 5-2.
›› The Eagles fell to 6-41 all-time against the Spartans.
›› Eastern is now 98-110 all-time against fellow Michigan schools and 4-1 on the year with wins earlier this year against Hillsdale (6-1), two over Ferris State (6-1 and 5-0), and a 6-1 win over Oakland one day earlier.
›› The 5-2 start ranks tied for the third-best in program history behind on the 1984 and 2003 teams that opened 6-1.
›› Head Coach Ryan Kucera is 5-2 in his first year with the program, which is the third-best start to a coaching career in program history with Lucy Parker (1976-77, EMU's inaugural season) and Tim Gray (2003), both of whom opened 6-1.
›› Eastern was unable to win the doubles point, seeing its streak of five wins in a row come to an end.
Up Next
Eastern, who started a five-match road trip with the dual at Michigan State, remains on the road next week with a pair of matches in the Hoosier State. The week opened Friday, Feb. 16, with a 3 p.m. match at Butler University in Indianapolis, Ind., before closing Sunday, Feb. 18, in a 2 p.m. dual with Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Ind.
Follow Along
For all things EMU Tennis, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMUEaglesTennis on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Tennis on Instagram.
Michigan State 4, Eastern Michigan 0
Feb. 11 • MSU Tennis Center • East Lansing, Mich.
SINGLES
#1: Daniella Shved (EM) led Matilde Morais (MS), 2-6, 7-5, 1-0 unfinished
#2: Prerna Vichare (EM) tied with Liisa Vehvilainen (MS), 3-6, 7-5 unfinished
#3: Issey Purser (MS) def. Andrea Quiroz, 6-2, 6-2
#4: Ria Bhakta (MS) def. Kysusha Saenko, 6-1, 6-1
#5: Linda Eloundou (EM) trailed Marley Lambert (MS), 2-6, 7-5, 0-1 unfinished
#6: Nicole Conrad (MS) def. Sabina Brichackova, 7-6(3), 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 4, 6
DOUBLES
#1: Ayshe Can / Nicole Conard (MS) def. Daniella Shved / Prerna Vichare, 6-0
#2: Sabina Brichackova / Ksyusha Saenko (EM) vs. Matilde Morais / Liisa Vehvilaninen (MS), 5-5 unfinished
#3: Sarah Fazlagic / Makenna Martinez (MS) def. Linda Eloundou / Andrea Quiroz, 7-5
Order of finish: 1, 3
EMU 5-2, MSU 5-2
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
1234
2710
Matilde Morais / 0 [MSUW]
650UF
#2 Singles Match
123
370
Liisa Vehvilainen / 0 [MSUW]
65UF
#3 Singles Match
12
22
Issey Purser / 0 [MSUW]
66
#4 Singles Match
12
11
Ria Bhakta / 0 [MSUW]
66
#5 Singles Match
1234
2700
Marley Lambert / 0 [MSUW]
651UF
#6 Singles Match
12
62
Nicole Conard / 0 [MSUW]
76
Order of Finish:
3,4,6
Players Mentioned
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